Hawaii mayor urges alternative sources of energy for the Pacific
Used cooking oil is now being processed to become environment-friendly bio-diesel that fuels some 1,000 garbage trucks in Honolulu, Hawaii, according to Honolulu mayor Jeremy Harris.
Amid a growing concern on pollution, global warming and the rising cost of fossil fuel, Harris said the city is stepping up efforts to tap alternative sources of energy, which would help reduce dependence on fuel.
Harris disclosed this before federal and local officials from U.S.-affiliated Pacific islands at the 23rd Pacific Islands Environment Conference sponsored by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency at the Dai-Ichi Hotel Saipan Beach.
Harris said the city government has been requiring restaurants to collect their used cooking oil, which is then processed into bio-diesel by a private firm. He said the city government buys the bio-diesel product from the private company and uses it to fuel Honolulu’s garbage trucks. The vehicles have been converted for compatibility with bio-diesel consumption, he said.
Harris also said Honolulu has begun the use of light-emitting diodes in traffic lights.
“All of these initiatives are designed to mitigate the need for fossil fuel,” Harris said, adding that Honolulu is taking a bold step to initiate the end of the fuel age.
Harris said island communities have the ability to break the automobile mold and plan on alternative transportation. He said modeling transportation systems after those of the U.S. mainland is a “big mistake.”
He said Honolulu would start using hybrid electric buses by December. Harris also mentioned other alternative transportations such as small passenger vehicles and even bicycles, stressing the importance of growth planning among island communities, so that residents would reduce the need for vehicle use if jobs, shops and schools were situated near residential areas.
He also disclosed that the city is putting up a Hydrogen Power Park to develop fuel cell technology. The process entails tapping solar energy to split hydrogen isotopes from water, which could then be used to create fuel cell energy. He said the use of fuel cell vehicles would reduce the need for fossil fuel.
Besides Harris, other leaders who joined the conference include Palau President Tommy Remengesau and Guam Gov. Felix Camacho.
CNMI Gov. Juan N. Babauta led CNMI representatives in hosting the conference, which would run through Friday.
